QI used to pay into a private pension. Since I look after a disabled child full-time, I have been unable to work for about 15 years and have not paid into the pension fund. There is currently a considerable amount in the pension fund, but not really enough to have a decent pension when you retire. I am 48 years old. Is there a way to make money and access the pension fund at this stage? Or do I have to wait until I’m 65?
The rules for when you can access the retirement plan depend on the type of retirement plan you have. If your retirement plan is a personal pension or Personal Retirement Savings Account (PRSA), you don’t have the option to claim your benefits until age 60, he said.
Earlier withdrawal of funds from these pension plans is only possible if you are permanently physically or mentally unable to carry out your own or another similar job. If you have a benefit in the company pension plan, you may have the opportunity to access the funds after the age of 50.
Once you have completed service with the employer and are over 50, you can claim your benefits subject to trustee approval, Mr McKenna said.
Q My mother is 92 years old and while I am still very fit and mobile I just want to make sure I can take care of her property, financial matters and other matters in case something happens. Should I talk to her about a power of attorney mechanism?
A In Ireland, according to Frank Conway, founder of financial services company MoneyWhizz and a qualified financial advisor, there are two types of power of attorney.
The first and widely used is the simple power of attorney and the second is a permanent power of attorney. The first of the two could be used when giving another person power to act on their behalf and is usually limited in scope or time, Mr Conway said. An example might be when someone is unable to participate in a particular transaction (due to travel, hospitalization, etc.) and authority is delegated to execute a document on their behalf. This power of attorney expires or terminates if a person becomes mentally disabled. A permanent power of attorney is as much as its title says.
It’s a document appointing someone else (or more than one person) to look after a person’s affairs if at some point in the future that person is medically diagnosed as unfit to do so, he said. The important thing about a health care proxy is that it can only be granted as long as a person is competent to do so and only becomes effective when this person is no longer able to take care of their own affairs.
From a financial welfare perspective, while no one will readily admit their own vulnerabilities, powers of attorney are by and large designed to protect them. One is specific to a limited purpose, while the other is for the rest of a person’s life, so it takes planning and trust to consider, discuss and implement, Mr Conway said.
Q We’ve been asked to work four hours of overtime every Saturday for the next three months, but since I earn €42,000 a year, I’m already paying the higher tax rate. I’m trying to figure out if it’s worth it. Would I make enough after taxes for a vacation?
A It is assumed that your hourly rate is €21.54, for which you will receive an overtime premium of one and a half times your hourly rate or €32.31. If you look at our tax structure, for a single person with no pension, your net pay is €798.72 for this work, according to Excel Recruitment CEO Barry Whelan.
Whether you can go on holiday with this extra money depends on your holiday expectations.
As with all taxes, the more you earn, the more you pay, he said. If you’re seen as the one who volunteers for overtime, the one who stands by the company and their boss when needed, the one who goes the extra mile, chances are you’re the one they’re volunteering overtime to , extra shifts and possible promotion opportunities.
If you want to go on holiday, don’t be the person who doesn’t work overtime because of taxes, but the one most likely to get promoted because they’re ambitious, Mr Whelan advised.
https://www.independent.ie/business/personal-finance/your-personal-finance-questions-i-am-a-full-time-carer-so-can-i-access-my-pension-plan-early-41601738.html Your personal financial questions – Can I start my retirement plan early as a full-time carer?
